"The sight filled the northern sky; the immensity of it was scarcely conceivable. As if from Heaven itself, great curtains of delicate light hung and trembled. Pale green and rose-pink, and as transparent as the most fragile fabric, and at the bottom edge a profound and fiery crimson like the fires of Hell, they swung and shimmered loosely with more grace than the most skillful dancer."
― Philip Pullman
This was the most impressive display of the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) I've seen in a couple of decades ― at times the entire sky was filled with shimmering lights. Just as they seemed to fade, another storm would materialize within seconds. This went on for a few hours!
The Space Weather Prediction Center stated at least 5 Coronal Mass Ejections were directed toward earth, but I wasn't planning on staying up due to several false alarms over the years. I just happened to wake up around 2:00 AM and could see them from my patio. I got dressed, grabbed my camera and tripod, and headed to Pheasant Branch to capture these images.
All images © 2024 Mike McDowell